The Chicago-based Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat ruled that the needle atop 1 WTC is not an antenna but a spire, so it can be counted when measuring the skyscraper's height. (Credit: Getty Images, 2013)

One World Trade Center officially tallest building in America

The Big Apple reclaimed its crown Tuesday as the home of the United States' tallest building, while New Yorkers who have cheered downtown Manhattan's rebound since 9/11 couldn't be any more proud of the honor.

The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat announced that at an official height of 1,776 feet, One World Trade Center slightly eclipses Chicago's Wills Tower's 1,451 feet for the title of the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere.

Over the last few months, members of the council debated the true height of the tower, which symbolically represents the year America declared its independence, trying to determine whether to include its 441-foot spire in the measurements.

They ultimately concluded that it was structurally significant and thus taller than Chicago's skyline Goliath.

"We were very satisfied with the detailed information presented by the [World Trade Center] team, in particular, that which affirmed that the structure on top of the building is meant as a permanent architectural feature, not a piece of functional-technical equipment," Timothy Johnson, the chairman of the CTBUH, said in a statement.

Members of the "Team New York" side of the debate took pride in the title.

Upper East Side accountant Navtej Sandhu, 27, loved the publicity.

"Anytime you say New York has the tallest building in the U.S., it brings more attention to lower Manhattan," said Sandhu, who has fond memories of the original towers because his dad worked there during the '80s and '90s.

Mayor Mike Bloomberg, who will today cut the ribbon at 4 World Trade Center, the first tower to open at the 16-acre site, wholeheartedly agreed.

"The recognition of One World Trade Center as America's tallest building marks another step forward in Lower Manhattan's incredible comeback," he said in a statement.

Catherine McVay Hughes, the chair of Manhattan Community Board 1, which oversees the neighborhood, hailed the title, recalling that "the four towers were always a beacon. You knew where lower Manhattan was."

Jimmy Quevedo, 28, who works in midtown, visited the original World Trade Center when he was a kid and said the title "speaks a lot about what the country has been through."

Some 9/11 survivors and relatives of victims had mixed feelings about the announcement.

"It doesn't matter to me who has the tallest building, as long as the building is safe," said Bill Doyle, father of Joseph Doyle, a Cantor Fitzgerald employee.